Interested in having your own Web Site? Worried about the cost? It may be cheaper than you think. Take a look at pricing at the PNG Web Hosting site. Sites with space for 15,000 MB of data, 300 GB transfer per month and 24hour a day /7day a week ticket/phone support for less than US$5.00 per month. -- DOT COM Domains from US$9.00 per year.

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Also remember that the accuracy of the information in this newsletter should not be relied upon - it is, after all, a gossip newsletter.

Links

Warning: PNG web sites seem to come and go. The fact of life is that it costs money to host a web site (try -- http://pngwebhost.com -- for an excellent, reliable but cheap deal) and there is not much return on the outlay to most businesses in PNG. If you do click on a link and use the services or even have some comments to make then please contact the people at the relevant web site and let them know so they at least know that someone has gained some value from their efforts. If you are so inclined then mention that you heard about them from this web site. -- The PNG Gossip Newsletter.

If links in the newsletter do not work properly, copy and paste the URL into your browser and press Enter. Be sure to copy the entire link, as it may wrap to the next line. If this still does not work please send an email to the newsletter advising of the broken link.

Do you have a web site or link to a PNG related area on the WWW? If so do you want it mentioned here? Then send an email to -- pngnewsqueue @ pnggossip.com

PNG Blog

Other Links

The news links below are some of the ones that have come in since the last newsletter but due to work commitments I have not been able to review them. Some of them may be duplicates coming from different news sources.

The following links have not been looked at due to time constraints but they are about PNG so may be worthy of a look.

News Items

Ballot Boxes Stolen

As is usual with elections in PNG armed men have stormed a polling booth in Kopiago station and stolen four ballot boxes when polling began in the Southern Highlands last Saturday. Of course you could change the number of ballot boxes and the location and use this for many more boxes that will probably "go missing" during and after the elections.

In another major incident, members of the PNG Defence Force confiscated two stacks of ballot papers from supporters of a candidate near a polling booth in Mendi. It is alleged that several of these ballot papers were then used to vote.

Telikom Issues

There has been an announcement in the papers that the government has delayed the introduction of competitors for Telikom. The same article carried news about a split of Telikom into two companies. One company will look after the retail side of the business and the other will look after wholesale supply.

Lae Open Polling

After the closing of one-day polling for the Lae Open seat many voters were disappointed that time had run out and that they could not vote. In some locations where security was guaranteed the polling booths stayed open until 7:30pm but in less secure areas they closed at 6pm just before dark. The polling opened late following morning rain. Many of the booths opened after 9am, an hour after the scheduled start. Many other people were frustrated because their names were not on the common roll although they had registered. Many SDA voters failed to vote due to the polling booths only being opened on their Sabbath.

Fast Money Schemes

The Bank of PNG has once again placed advertisements in the local press warning people about fast money schemes as some candidates in the elections have informed voters that if they get elected into the National Parliament they will force the Central Bank to release monies and effect payments on theses schemes. The Bank warns that the claims being made are outright lies and that the central bank does not deal with fast money schemes and / or private individuals and does not issue guarantees or warranties. The bank advises that many unaware victims have lost their money and that the central bank is not going to recover money from the schemes.

Peaceful Elections

Overall the start to the elections seems to be peaceful. As with previous elections in PNG voting scams still appear to be widespread. Despite applying indelible ink to the fingernail of those who have voted there are reports of people attempting to vote twice. Underage voting has also occurred. One 17-year-old girl was able to proudly display her ink mark, despite being a year shy of the legal PNG voting age. There have even been reports of people, including electoral officials, filling out ballot papers in bulk in favour of particular candidates, prompting police to seize some of the papers. Commissioner of Police, Gari Baki, said polling in the Southern Highlands province had been "overall pretty spot on"

PX Flight Malfunction

An Air Niugini Fokker F100 has had a pressurisation problem on a flight to Lae. Newspaper reports state that a water bottle burst and some passengers had blood coming from their ears.

The CEO of Air Niugini said the incident has been reported to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Air Niugini Safety Manager and an investigation into the incident is continuing.

Air Niugini has apologised to the passengers and their families for the inconvenience caused by this incident.

The Fokker F100 has been returned to service after successfully undergoing a complete examination of the pressurisation system and flying two test flights. Parts of the system have been removed from the plane and sent off for analysis to determine what caused the problem.

Airways Hotel

Kevin Yaxley, the General Manager at the Airways, has announced the opening of the new Health and Racquet Club at the Airways site at seven-mile, Jackson's Airport. The Airways is also building 67 luxurious suites, a retail arcade and a stunning new day spa. Visit the Airways web site located at -- http://www.airways.com.pg

Silver Whisper

The Silver Whisper is set to sail exciting itineraries around Asia for 2008. On the 1st of February 2008, the six-star Silver Whisper will sail from Sydney to Hong Kong and call at Bundaberg, Honiara, Madang and Wewak in PNG. See the press release at -- http://www.etravelblackboard.com/index.asp?id=66338&nav=5

PNG's Frankfurt Office

In the last edition I said that Ruediger Knospe and crew were the people to see about PNG in Europe. I also said that Ruediger had 18 years of experience in looking after tourists interested in PNG. Ruediger, on a quick trip to PNG, took time out to set the record straight and let me know that instead of 18 years he has more than 20 years of experience. Isn't it nice when someone comes all the way from Germany to let you know of errors in the newsletter? Thanks for the update on the number of years service also the fact that Colin Couston still reads the newsletter! Of course the block of chocolate brought all the way from Germany made from PNG ingredients helped to ease the pain of having to admit that I was wrong.

Arts and Crafts

If you are looking for Arts and Crafts in Port Moresby then there are two recommended locations-

Ela Beach Craft Market at Ela Beach of course held on the last Saturday of the month.

Port Moresby Grammar School Craft Market held at the POM Grammar on the second Saturday of the monthly.

There are also other locations around Port Moresby where you can purchase Arts and Crafts. If you are a visitor to Port Moresby or any other town in PNG then ask at your hotel or ask a local where you should go.

Commissioner's Tour

The Police Commissioner Gari Baki has paid a low-key visit to parts of Southern Highlands during the elections. Mr Baki urged the people to vote according to the laws of the country, adding that his security force members were just present to ensure that the people vote freely and honestly without tampering of the electoral processes including use of threats, intimidation, violence and undue influence.

Untouched Paradise

Read the article from Australia about PNG - the untouched paradise. Here is just one paragraph from the article

quoteDespite the over-used term "paradise" applied to many of its tourism products, PNG can claim to hold a wealth of untapped tourism potential, ranging from unexploited surfing reefs, unspoilt dive sites, genuine eco-tourism experiences and pristine white sandy beaches in spades.
end quote

Meri Blouses

Daniel, in the United Kingdom, says the latest fashion in London is the meri blouse. It is becoming one of the biggest hit all the shops. I have also seen something similar mentioned on Australian TV as well as being the latest fashion statement for the modern woman.

PNG Web Hosting

Interested in creating your own PNG Web Site or any web site for that matter? Worried about the cost? It may be cheaper than you think. Take a look at pricing offered at the PNG Web Hosting site -- http://www.pngwebhost.com -- Sites with space for 15,000 MB of data, 300 GB transfer per month and 24 hours a day / 7 day a week ticket / phone support for less than US$5.00 per month. The larger web-hosting plan at US$9.75 per month offers 25,000MB of disk space, 400GB transfers and the ability to host up to 10 domains and 32 sub domains on this one package. All sites come with a web site builder to make web site making easy! As an added bonus several PHP and MySQL options are available. The best way is to visit the web site and see for yourself. Oh, and by the way, DOT COM Domain Names are as little as US$9.00 per year.

Remember there is no need to spend hours and hours learning HTML code or graphics editing. No need to worry about details with PNG Web Hosting. Let the tools such as the Joomla! or Mambo Content Management System, help you on your way. If that seems too much effort then there is also a "fill in the gaps" html web site builder available free of charge. So if you are looking for a permanent home for even just your email address then take a look at -- http://pngwebhost.com

Coming Events

Wahgi Cultural Show -- 10th - 12th of July.

13th National Mask Festival, Kokopo - East New Britain Province -- 12th to the 15th of July

Hiri Moale Festival, Port Moresby - National Capital District -- 13th to 17th of September

The Tourism Promotion Authority has the following to say about the popular annual Hiri Moale Festival.

It will be held at Ela Beach in Port Moresby and organisers say the event which depicts the historical significance of the Hiri trade between the Motuan people and their Gulf neighbours to the west will be bigger and better this year. As in the past, the symbol of the Hiri Moale Festivals today remains the giant double-hull Lakatois (canoes) which plied these waters risking many lives over many months to trade fish for food from the west. Today, the Lakatois (sometimes spelt lagatois) are sailed into Ela Beach by certain chosen villages accompanied by singing and dancing. A highlight of the Hiri Moale Festival is the Hiri Hanenamo or Hiri Queen quest.

PNG 30th Independence Day Celebrations -- 16th September

Goroka Show -- 16th to the 18th of September

National Cultural Commission Arts and Crafts Exhibition, Port Moresby -- from the 26th to the 28th of October

Morobe Show, Lae -- 27th to 28th of October

The Milne Bay Canoe and Kundu (drum) festival is to be held in November from the 2nd to the 4th.